News Corp. announced that it has completed a 100 percent acquisition of TV Riga, a Russian language broadcast station. The international media giant, which had owned a 70 percent stake, completed the takeover by buying a 30 percent stake. "The transaction represents a consolidation of News Corporation European Television's assets in Latvia, which now include 100 percent ownership of LNT, the leading Latvian entertainment channel, and TV Riga," the company said in a statement.
Amber Trust II, a Lithuanian investment fund that owns Premia, the largest ice cream production group in the Baltics, acquired the St. Petersburg ice cream producer Hladokombinat No. 1 together with local partners. The size of the deal was not disclosed. "The Premia group is the leader of ice-cream production in the Baltic countries, and the possibilities for expansion are rather limited, except for Latvia's market. The St. Petersburg region is close to Estonia, and its market is similar to the whole Baltic market. Thus we see a big potential for expansion in that particular region," Premia CEO Arunas Kontautas was quoted as saying in a statement. Hladokombinat No. 1 is the third largest ice-cream maker in St. Petersburg.
Finland's A-Katsastus acquired a vehicle testing firm in Estonia that owns two vehicle testing centers. The purchase is part of A-Katsastus' expansion plan in the Baltics, the company said. One of the testing centers acquired is in Maardu, about 20 kilometers from Tallinn, and the other in Rakvere. A-Katsastus hopes to achieve the leading position in the Baltics' vehicle testing market within the next couple of years. There are about 3.3 million vehicles in the three Baltic countries. A-Katsastus is the market leader in the vehicle testing market, with 60 percent both in Finland and in Belgium, and the second biggest such company in Denmark and Latvia.
